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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – A local woman is in the hospital after a deer hit her car.

The deer ended up there after being catapulted by another car.

It happened in a split second, on Route 8 in Mercer Township.

“All of the sudden, I heard my mom screaming, ‘no, no, no, no,’” said Bailey Hartle who was involved in the accident.

In broad daylight, Jessica Hartle, her 15-year-old son Bailey and 4-year-old daughter Chloe were driving in their van Sunday around 1:30 pm. when a female deer ran right in front of them.

“I knew what not to do, I knew not to try to avoid it and hit another car or slam on the brakes, so I just braced myself and we hit the deer,” Jessica Hartle said.

The deer then flew across the other side of the road, into opposing traffic, slamming right through Terence and Darlene Coursen’s windshield.

“In an instant, I never saw it go until it was halfway through the windshield,” said Terence Coursen.

The doe ended up in the back seat of the couple’s SUV, injuring both of them.

“We both had seatbelts on, she was laying down in her seat sleeping. If she was sitting up, she probably wouldn’t be here,” Coursen said.

Darlene Coursen, 57, was injured the worst. She had to be taken by life flight to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital. Terence Coursen was treated at the Grove City Medical Center for cuts on his face and eyes.

He was released last night. Everyone is expected to be alright, but it was a terrifying reminder of what can happen in any community.

Darlene Coursen is listed in stable condition, but will have to undergo surgery for multiple broken bones behind her eye.